Officer Down
by JazziePerson
Summary: Due to a technicality, it was Cooper who was shot. Remove that technicality and everything could change.


**Author's Note**: This is just a quick one shot of what could have happened in Mayhem. I hope you like it and please review. Also, a shout out to sienna27 for the review she wrote for one of my Torchwood stories. Thanks.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Criminal Minds or any of the characters.

-----

Officer Down

Emily and Cooper rounded the corner at top speed, Emily slightly ahead. Her heels clacked on the concrete walkway and her blood was pumping loudly in her ears. She hauled the cold air into her lungs as she ran, trying to keep a clear head as she chased the UnSub down the sidewalk. She slowed as she turned the corner and screeched to a stop when she saw that the UnSub himself had stopped. He was standing solidly, waiting for her to come round the corner. Loosely holding a gun, his eyes were calm as he pulled the trigger.

The impact knocked Emily backwards and she hit the concrete with a crack. Stars exploded in front of her eyes and she suddenly felt pain wash through her, radiating from her shoulder. She reached her hand up to investigate the wound and her fingers came back covered in blood.

That was when she heard gunshots and Cooper's outraged shouts. Emily couldn't see, every sense was taken up by the intense pain and it was all she could do to stop herself screaming. But then there was a person at her side, shouting something and pressing down on the gunshot injury. More pain exploded in her shoulder and her blood turned to fire in her veins. She cried out, the pain overwhelming her. She could feel tears building up in her eyes, but she tried to fight them down, along with the excruciating pain. It was getting harder and harder but she kept trying.

"Agent Prentiss!" Cooper's voice broke through the fog that clouded her brain. "Agent Prentiss, keep your eyes open. Come on! Keep fighting!"

Emily blinked forcefully and Cooper's face came into view.

"That's good. That's very good." Cooper smiled at her. "Hold on a bit longer, yeah?"

Emily opened her mouth to reply but she couldn't get a sound to come out.

Cooper saw. "Don't talk, just breathe." He pulled the radio microphone out from his sleeve cuff. "Repeat, officer down!"

That was when it suddenly hit Emily. She'd been shot. She could die.

And that was when she blacked out.

***

The team arrived at the same time as the ambulance. Cooper was still at Emily's side, his jacket pressed against the gunshot wound. Emily's face was grey but her chest was still rising and falling relatively evenly.

As she was loaded into the ambulance, Cooper joined the team. Every face was grave.

"I can't stay here. I'm going with her." Morgan decided.

At Hotch's nod, he strode over to the ambulance and climbed in behind the paramedics.

"Detective Cooper, what happened?" Hotch asked, his tone normal.

"We were on the street. We heard a gunshot. We were running down the road. I got caught behind a bunch of tourists so Agent Prentiss was ahead of me. She rounded the corner and there was another gunshot. When I got there, she was on the ground with a shoulder wound and I shot the guy."

"That's it?" Rossi asked.

"That's it." Cooper confirmed.

"What are we missing?" Rossi urged.

"I don't know." Hotch's hand twitched as if he wanted to run his hand through his hair but had restrained himself from doing so. "But we better find something. Now we're two people down with Prentiss incapacitated and Morgan with her. We've got to find something."

"You got it." Rossi nodded and the team plus Cooper dispersed back to the SUVs.

***

In the ambulance, Morgan had to sit back and let the paramedics work. They were intent on monitoring Emily's heartbeat and blood pressure. Morgan was intent on watching Emily's face. A few times her mouth twitched and her eyebrows pinched but other than that, there was no movement, no sign that she was waking up. Her breathing was ragged and her skin was a translucent grey in colour and Morgan hated to say it, or even think it, but she looked like she was dying.

Morgan looked away, looked at the floor, anywhere but at Emily. Even though she was with the best people and help was there, he had the horrible, sickening feeling that she was going to die and he didn't want to remember her like this. He didn't want to have the image of her, grey skinned and unconscious, struggling for breath in an ambulance imprinted in his brain for the rest of his life. He wanted to remember her as the person she actually was. He wanted to remember the time, for example, she had confessed to being a nerd and they'd discovered each other's love for Kurt Vonnegut. But, at the same time, Morgan couldn't drag his eyes away from her. He didn't want to waste possibly the last seconds he had with her. He needed to memorise her, make sure that she'd never fade in his brain.

And that was when they arrived at the hospital. The paramedics pulled the stretcher roughly from the ambulance and began wheeling it into the Emergency Room, towards the OR. Morgan rushed after them, dodging past people as he desperately tried to keep Emily in sight. If he lost her now, it felt like she'd disappear forever.

The paramedics suddenly burst through double doors at the end of the corridor and Morgan had to stop. She'd gone into surgery and now all he could do was wait.

***

It was only the next morning when the team finally got news of Emily. After the horrendous night they'd had, none of them had been able to check in on her or even call the hospital before they all fell asleep for a few hours. And with Hotch being injured and Kate having died, they'd all had a lot on their minds. Of course she had been informed about what had happened and she'd also seen the explosion on the news. So early the following morning, Hotch made a point to drop by the hospital and see how she was.

When he got to her room, he knocked on the door and waited for her shout before letting himself in. He closed the door behind him and looked over at Emily. She was sitting up in her bed in a hospital gown, her right arm strapped up in a sling. She had her hair loose around her shoulders and she looked a great deal better than she had before.

"Sir," she smiled when she saw him but then her expression saddened. "I'm sorry about Kate."

Hotch nodded, not sure what to say in response to that, "How are you this morning?"

Emily caught his eye and tried to let him know that she knew he was avoiding conversation about Kate. "Eh, better. I'm getting there. The Doctor's said she'll discharge me later this afternoon."

"Good. When we get back to Virginia, I want you to take a few days off to recover. The team's flying out in an hour. Will you be out by then?"

"Knowing the doctor assigned to me, probably not." Emily tipped her head to one side.

"Well, I'm driving back to Virginia this afternoon; I'm not allowed to fly. I could wait until you're discharged and drive you back. I don't want you driving back on your own."

"Really, Hotch, I'm fine. You don't have to wait for me." Emily protested. Out of habit, she went to move her right arm and flinched.

"Yeah, you look fine." Hotch frowned, sarcastic, half bemused and half irritated.

"Okay, fine." Emily huffed. "Thank you."

Hotch smiled. "Call me when you're discharged. I'll drive you back to the hotel so you can pick up your stuff and then we'll head back."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Thank you Hotch. Really."

"You're welcome." Hotch turned to leave but stopped just before he reached the door. "I'm glad you didn't die, Prentiss."

Emil grinned. "Me too, sir."


End file.
